A
Minnesota Soldier Documents his Regiment’s Path to the First Battle of Bull Run Recently, three letters from Jasper N. Searles of the
first Minnesota regiment were unveiled that describe the twenty-year old’s
experience from training leading up to the first Battle of Bull Run. These letters stand as significant within the
Civil War context because of a lack of material...

Encamped in the wilderness of Virginia, mere days before his death in the first battle of the Civil War, a young major set pen to paper and began to write. In poignant eloquence, Sullivan Ballou described the conflicting forces at the heart of his identity. Though consumed by undying love for his wife, his patriotic devotion drove him forward toward battle—and death.“[M]y love of Country,”...

Union Colonel Robert McAllister participated in the Battle of Bull Run near Manassas, Virginia on July 21, 1861. McAllister and the 1st New Jersey volunteers were instructed to act as a rear guard at the town of Centreville for General Irvin McDowell’s routed force. The Battle of Bull Run was the first major battle of the Civil War. After the arrival of Confederate reinforcements, Union soldiers...